Strawberry, Basil & Balsamic Frozen Yogurt

I must confess that whilst in Italy it took nothing but sheer will not to sink my teeth into a heaping bowl of gelato. In Dorcas Lane fashion I must say that gelato ''is my one weakness''. Pillows of sweetened cream piled high atop a crunchy cone. Who wouldn't be tempted.

Thankfully my temptations did not lead to folly, but rather inspired me to create my own version, equally enticing and delicious. Mind you, this recipe does not have the same constitution as Italian gelato, but the tangy yogurt, sweet honey and slight bite of balsamic vinegar adds a unique flavor, far more dimensional than that of pistachio or chocolate.

So for those of you who enjoy a diet free from processed sugar and eggs, this sweet, cold treat is one to add to your repertoire. And if yogurt is on your no-no list I am sure this would be delectable with coconut milk. 

Now if only I could figure out how to make a grain free ice cream cone!

Strawberry, Basil & Balsamic Frozen Yogurt

• 3 cups whole milk yogurt ( For those of you who are on the SCD diet you can use the SCD legal yogurt.)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 TBS balsamic vinegar
• 2 TSP vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 lb. hulled strawberries
• 1 cup fresh basil, packed

Place strawberries and basil leaves in a blender or food processor and blend. Combine yogurt, honey, vinegar, vanilla and salt in a bowl. Add strawberry and basil mixture and stir to combine. 

Place mixture into ice cream maker and proceed according to the machine's instructions. 

Makes about 5 cups. 

Comments

[Esther]

A great post! Fantastic how it doesn't have any 'sugar'. Gorgeous pics also!

[Maria @ ScandiFoodie]

I do love home-made frozen yoghurt! This sounds like the perfect flavour combination for it too!

[Sanda]

This looks soooo good and photos...ohhh my...I love them!!!

[Lisa @ Tarte du Jour]

Mmm... this looks like refreshing summer treat! My bountiful basil plant would love to be a part of this dessert!

[Snippets of Thyme]

It is so wonderful that you are helping so many people who need to modify their recipes to accommodate health concerns. It must be difficult to travel with things like gelato leering everywhere but the options seem to grow by the day from all of the beautiful blogs offering substitute ingredients. Delicious photos, and the ingredients look creative and do-able!

[Cookie and Kate]

Your willpower far surpasses mine—I ate at least three flavors of gelato a day while I was in Italy! I actually came across a recipe for raw, vegan ice cream cones while I was browsing one of Matthew Kenney's books yesterday (I believe it's in the raw dessert book). It probably requires a dehydrator, though. Thought it was worth mentioning!

[Bev Weidner]

I am dying, that is so gorgeous! I can just SMELL it. My gawd!!

[katie @KatieDid]

I love that adorable natural looking bowl you have in one of those pictures, almost like a hollowed out stone. I seriously need to invest in an ice cream maker one of these days, I'm tired of seeing such amazing recipes and not being able to try them!

[Jacqui]

How funny, I totally just made a batch of cinnamon chocolate frozen yogurt last night! With my first batch of homemade yogurt too! Strawberry, basil, balsamic sounds really delicious.

[Sarah]

Oh yum. I love these flavors together. I once had a strawberry balsamic ice cream here in SF and it was so unique and delicious. Wonderful job! I would not have been able to resist the temptation in Italy...

[fresh365]

Welcome home! This looks delicious and is even more tempting than the sugar filled variety. Gorgeous photos. Love the black with pink hues!

[Krista]

Oh so beautiful. :-) Love the lighting in these photos. So old world and peaceful.

[Katie]

This sounds absolutely heavenly!

[monica of hola!design]

Oh I need an ice cream maker! This looks easy and tasty, I love the little bowl you used on the last pic (left).

it always a pleasure to visit your blog, have a good week!
xoxo, monica.

[Kristin]

This looks incredible. I first learned how to make gelato in Italy, and rarely do I find a recipe as pure and delicious looking as the ones I made in the mountains of Calabria! xo

[Sharon @ Granola Meets Grits]

What a sophisticated, enticing flavor combination! Thank you so much Coco! You always have such beautiful, inventive ideas. :)

[Amanda@EasyPeasyOrganic]

Absolutely inspired. I love your blog! Alas, my freezer stopped working a week ago ... so it might be awhile till I make this, but I have it bookmarked :) I love the combination of basil and balsamic and strawberry. Oh yum.

[Karrina]

This sounds amazing and it just so happens that I'm getting a new Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker today! I don't have any strawberries but I do have an abundance of blackberries and blueberries. Do you think either would work in lieu of the strawberries or would the flavor be compromised?

[Natalia]

Coco, you have the most delightful blog I've seen in a while. Although I'm not into cooking myself, I love your photos of food. Simply beautiful.

[Cristy]

I found a recipe for an ice cream cone that is grain free right here:

http://mariahealth.blogspot.com/search?q=cone

Your photos are amazing and make me yearn to return to Italy! Everything over there tastes so much better. Great blog!

[Melissa @ thefauxmartha]

This looks absolutely delicious. I've made basil ice cream and strawberry ice cream this summer too. I guess I need to make them all in one batch!

[pips]

how beautiful are your photos??? I've just discovered your blog and it is my fav!

[Mrs Bok]

I love strawberries and balsamic!

The photography on your blog is beautiful. Kinfolk mag sent me! Love your blog.

[Maria @ Orchard Bloom]

This sounds perfect! I've been on the look out for a just this kind of sweet treat. Thanks!

[Gunnhild]

Wow! I just stumbled over your blog, and started reading about you under "Coco", about your husband having the Chrons disease,and my heart literally skipped a beat. It was like faith had brought me to your site! My husband also have this truly difficult disease, he got diagnosed with it three years ago and still he struggles to find his way to deal with it. He´s currently on medication to battle the infections, but desperately wishes not to. Maybe this blog could actually help him (us). I´m going to start trying out recipes pronto! Tell me, was it very hard switching to this diet?

And your photos are gorgeous! I´m instantly inspired to travel, bake, and live life to the fullest when I see them. I´m very interested in photo so I wonder what lens you use, and if you can please share with me how you get that tilting effect in your images? This is something I thought one could only do with a Large Format camera?
Again, beautiful blog, thank you for sharing it with the world!
xx

[betty]

this sounds wonderful id try mine with coconut milk yum :)

[Fabiana]

Amazing pages, really special ideas and great photos!!!